in the third-place playoff game after losing to Argentina in a penalty shoot-out in the semi-final. Route to the final Brazil Brazil was in Group B at the World Cup, in which they were joined by Cameroon, Russia and Sweden. Their first game was the tournament opener at Stanford Stadium in California, on June 20 against Russia. Brazil opened the scoring on 26 minutes, when Romário evaded his marker following an in-swinging corner and hit the ball into the goal. Brazil scored again on 52 minutes, when Raí converted a penalty following a foul by Vladislav Ternavsky on Romário, and they went on to complete a 2–0 win. Their second game was against Cameroon on June 24, once again at Stanford. Romário gave Brazil the lead on 39 minutes after receiving a pass from Dunga and hitting it past goalkeeper Joseph-Antoine Bell. In the second half, Cameroon defender Rigobert Song was sent off for a foul on Raí, before Márcio Santos and Bebeto added two further goals to complete a 3–0 win for Brazil. The result meant that Brazil had qualified for the round-of-16 with one game to spare. Brazil's final group game was against Sweden at the Pontiac Silverdome in Michigan on June 28. Kennet Andersson gave Sweden the lead on 23 minutes, following a long pass by Tomas Brolin, before Romário equalized for Brazil with his third goal of the tournament shortly after half time. The game finished 1–1, which was sufficient for Brazil to finish as group winners. Brazil faced the United States in the round of 16, playing the hosts on July 4, their Independence Day. Brazil's performance through most of the game was described by The Guardian Paul Wilson as "wholly unconvincing as aspiring champions", until Bebeto scored the game's only goal on 72 minutes. Both teams finished the game with 10 players after Brazil's Leonardo was dismissed for a violent foul while American Fernando Clavijo was sent off for a second bookable offense. In the quarter-finals, Brazil played the Netherlands at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas on July 9. After a goalless first half, Romário gave Brazil the lead from a Bebeto pass on 53 minutes, before Bebeto himself scored a second ten minutes later. The Dutch players disputed the second goal, saying that Romário had been caught by their offside trap when Branco passed forward to him in the build-up, but the goal